Asians top achievers in global maths, science study

Washington, Dec 11 (IANS) Asian students were top achievers in maths and science in both the fourth and eighth grade levels, according to the latest reports.In maths at the fourth grade level, Hong Kong SAR and Singapore were the top performing countries, followed by Chinese Taipei and Japan. Kazakhstan, the Russian Federation, England, Latvia and the Netherlands also performed very well.

In maths achievement at the eighth grade, Chinese Taipei, Korea, and Singapore were followed by Hong Kong SAR and Japan. There was a substantial gap in average mathematics achievement between the five Asian countries and the next group of four similarly performing countries, including Hungary, England, the Russian Federation, and the US.

In science, students from Singapore and Chinese Taipei were top performers at both grade levels. In science achievement at the fourth grade, Singapore was the top performing country, followed by Chinese Taipei and Hong Kong SAR.

Japan, the Russian Federation, Latvia, England, the US, Hungary, Italy, and Kazakhstan also performed very well. At the eighth grade in science, Singapore and Chinese Taipei again had the highest average achievement, followed by Japan and Korea. England, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Slovenia, Hong Kong SAR, and the Russian Federation also performed well.

The report by Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) is one of the world’s most influential global assessments of student achievement in maths and science, said a TIMSS release.

With more than 60 participant countries and 425,000 students assessed, TIMSS 2007 also is the largest study of student maths and science achievement in the world. Each country sampled approximately 4,000 students in 150 schools.